Showing HIOC representatives how oil is pumped from the truck during a delivery is Trent Van Doren.File photo by George Pacciello

Just as winter settles in, a group of Hunterdon County clergy kicks off its annual campaign to raise money to help the needy. Specifally, the fund helps people find or stay in their homes.

Donors will receive an income tax deduction for 2012.

The Hunterdon Interfaith Outreach Council (HIOC) has set a goal of $40,000. That’s the same as the target announced a year ago; $43,481 actually came in.

With that amount HIOC was able to help more than 200 people, of whom 100 were children, in 19 towns across Hunterdon. One recipient of the assistance wrote, “You not only filled my tank with oil, you filled my heart with hope.”

Of the money received in the new campaign, half will be allocated to help families pay their fuel bills, with the balance going to assist people in paying the security deposit for housing paid for with federal Section 8 funds. Generally, this is a month and a half to two months rent, said the Rev. Harry Mazujian of Calvary Episcopal Church in Flemington. He’s HIOC treasurer. Rabbi Evan Jaffe of Flemington Jewish Community Center is president.

“We’re very excited” about the deposit aid, Mazujian said. “It’s really going to help people.”

HIOC works with the state’s Family Success Center in Flemington to administer the deposit part of the program. According to Carmel Gittings, a counselor at the center, for Section 8 assistance, a list of people seeking funds is kept by the county Division of Housing. People are chosen periodically through a lottery.

“They are given two months to look for a new apartment and come up with a security deposit,” she explained. Depending on the size of the apartment, rent can range from $1,100 for a one-bedroom unit to much more, but it was decided to limit deposit funding to $1,500 a family, she said. The Division of Housing administers Section 8 locally; once it approves the family, it notifies Family Success to process the security payment, she explained.

The other agency involved is Family Promise, formerly called the Interfaith Hospitality Network of Hunterdon (IHN). It was created to assist low-income, homeless families and women by providing space in church facilities as temporary places to stay. Now it’s expanded to also provide other services including food, homeless prevention/rapid re-housing, mental health services and after-shelter support.

State regulations prevent shut-offs of people using natural gas or electricity for heat, because they are regulated public utilities, but there are no such rules for users of fuel oil or propane. That’s where the HIOC money helps.

Family Promise, which already has a screening process for its clients, evaluates requests for fuel aid. All the clergy group does is raise funds.

The new campaign has started off well, with $9,600 in donations received since its fiscal year started Nov. 1, Mazujian reported. He noted that in helping families stay in their homes, it’s especially good for the children “since they can stay in the school they’ve been attending.”

While some Hunterdon congregations support the fund, donations from individuals and companies are also sought. To participate, make a checks payable to “HIOC” and put “Utility Assistance” on the memo line. Send to HIOC, c/o Flemington Jewish Community Center, 5 Sergeantsville Road, Flemington 08822.